Funding a fairer energy transition.

The Climate Investment Platform (CIP) launched last September to fast-track renewable energy investments in developing countries. Led by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and UNDP in collaboration with the Green Climate Fund, it is a vital initiative focussed on parts of the world being short-changed when it comes to the energy transition.

In November, BloombergNEF’s annual Climatescope study revealed investments had fallen sharply in developing regions over the previous 12-month period, with coal still accounting for 50% of all generation across the 104 emerging markets studied. The CIP programme, introduced at the UN Climate Action Summit in New York, September 2019, is striving to level the playing field. And IRENA is urging developers to register their clean power projects on a new global portal to connect with a growing number of financial partners actively looking for funding opportunities.

“Unlocking the finance needed to accelerate the global energy transformation towards climate and sustainable development goals is well recognised as being key to success,” said IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera. “The capital needed to accelerate the energy transformation is available and can be increasingly channelled into appropriate, high-impact, promising project opportunities.”

IRENA will hold a series of investment forums based around the 14 regional investment clusters on the portal, to further accelerate the growth of developer-funder collaborations. Project owners should register their projects within the relevant cluster, while potential financial backers can ‘become a partner’ of IRENA for CIP.

“As the Agency adopts a more action-oriented approach, helping developing countries access the finance needed to realise their renewable energy goals, whilst supporting positive social and economic outcomes is a clear priority,” added Mr La Camera. “With a number of strong partners behind the platform already, investors, governments and project proponents are now invited to join and present relevant low-carbon energy plans and investment opportunities.” 

6 March 2020

Innovatorsmag